A Warning Sign
by PunkPinkPower
Summary: Kevin suddenly realizes it's serious between them when Mike sits down beside him, puts a hand on his shoulder, and agrees to talk about why Kevin's upset instead of have sex.


_Notes: A big thank you to SailorSol, Rosabelle, and noxelementalist for consultations on the spanish in this story. It's... probably acceptable? It works for me, though, so here's hoping! You'd think, living in the southwest, the whitey here would know a bit more spanish, but I'm sad to report that I'm whitey, and I apologize. _

He gets it in the mail on a Thursday morning. Ji hands it to him before breakfast, and Kevin stares at it while he drinks his juice. It's a big, silvery envelope, and he frowns when he sees the return address label: _Mr. & Mrs. William Duhaney_.

He forgets about it when the Nighlock sensor goes off and leaves it sitting on his dresser, where it greets him that night when he comes into the room.

He opens the envelope to find what he thought he might. It's a wedding invitation. For his dad. And Carol.

Kevin sinks to the bed, studies the pretty purplish-blue invite. There's no personalization, no note on the back, no other letter in the envelope. No explanation as to why they've decided to get married now, or why Kevin is getting the invite in the mail along with the other 300 guests.

He has to take several deep breathes to keep from crumpling it up.

He knows why, obviously. Who knows what crazy story his dad had to make up for his girlfriend when Kevin left. That he joined the peace core, probably. Or is off doing some sort of missionary work. Something that would explain the lack of contact. And Kevin knows that he's not supposed to be around his dad, not supposed to see his family or friends to keep them from getting hurt.

But would it really have been so much trouble to pick up the phone? Kevin knows it's not allowed… but for something like this, even he thinks there should be exceptions.

He sits there, holding the invite in his hands, thinking. His dad knows he probably won't be able to go to the wedding. And he's still doing it. He's going to get married, re-married really, and he's going to do it without Kevin there, and he doesn't even send an explanation. The thought makes Kevin fume that he's spent so much time thinking about what his dad would think of _his_ life decisions, now that's it clear his dad hadn't given him the same consideration.

How would his dad feel is he just got a letter in the mail with a picture of Mike and Kevin, and no explanation?

But then, who knows how long they've put it off already? His dad had only been dating Carol for a few months when he got the call, and now… now it was almost two years later. Who knew how much longer it would be before they defeated Master Xandred? Who could ask them to hold off that long?

Kevin could, dammit. He realizes how angry he is at the same moment that the utter despair hits him. He feels like sinking in on himself as he realizes it all, wants to tear the invite up, but something rough caught in his throat stops him.

There's a knock on the door, and Kevin hurriedly shoves the invite into his bedside table drawer and closes it just as the door is opening.

Mike lets himself in, closes the door silently behind him. He comes towards Kevin with a warm smile, and Kevin stands, relaxes just a little when Mike puts his hands on him.

"Hey," Mike greets, stepping in close, his mouth already within inches of Kevin's.

"Hey," Kevin echoes, putting his hands on Mike's cheeks and letting Mike lean in, press their lips together hungrily like they have for the last two weeks every night without fail.

They haven't been able to go a day or night without touching each other lately. They've been sneaking kisses in the hallway, playing footsy under the table at dinner. They've been sleeping in each other's rooms, falling into exhausted slumber after they finish what used to take them minutes and now takes them hours. It's like there's something in the air, Kevin thinks, that's lowering their inhibitions, making it impossible to keep away from each other.

Kevin's not sure he can keep away, not even tonight, but as much as he wants to be with Mike, he can't do this. Not now. Not when he's feeling so crummy inside that he'll probably end up crying by the end of the night, and he's not really sure Mike needs or wants to see that.

He pulls away, gently pushes Mike's face back with his hands, and shakes his head, keeping his eye closed to Mike's questioning look.

"I'm sorry," he says, pulling out of Mike's grasp and sitting back down on the bed. "I can't do this right now."

He ducks his head, brings his hands to his face and sighs into them. Mike doesn't step away from him, though. In fact, his hands stay on Kevin, one on his shoulder and the other on his arm. When Kevin looks up after a long moment, Mike's staring down at him worriedly. "What's wrong?"

Kevin shakes his head. "It's… I'm just…" he falters, uncertain what excuse to give.

Mike purses his lips and waits for a moment, and when Kevin can't get anything else out, he takes a step back. Kevin is about to start kicking himself, not really surprised that Mike's going to leave, when he doesn't. He turns, twists, sits down on the bed next to Kevin with one leg tucked underneath him so that he's facing him, and rests his hand on Kevin's shoulder gently.

Kevin realizes, suddenly, that this had gotten serious between them. That if Mike is willing to sit down and listen to whatever is upsetting Kevin without knowing what it is, instead of having sex, that he's here for more than just the sex. That he's invested something in Kevin, might be hoping Kevin has done the same. Kevin turns his head, catches Mike's eye, and lets out a grateful sigh.

"What is it?" Mike prods again, and this time Kevin reaches over to the bedside table, pulls out the wedding invitation and hands it to Mike.

Mike takes it, studies it for a moment, then looks up at Kevin with raised eyebrows.

"A wedding invitation?" He asks, running a finger over the silver embossed lettering. "For… your dad?"

Kevin nods. He glances down at the five by seven card with the lacy trim.

"Oh," Mike says, reading it again. "I'm sorry. I didn't know your parents were split up."

Kevin smiles a sad smile, takes the invite out of Mike's hand and holds it in his own. "Yeah, well. They're not. My mom died when I was seven."

"Shit," Mike says immediately, and that does make Kevin smile as he glances over at the green ranger's awkward face. "Sorry."

Kevin shakes his head slowly. "It was a long time ago."

Mike nods, waits.

"He met Carol a couple months before I came here," Kevin supplies after a few minutes.

"And," Mike draws the word out, like he's trying to make sense of Kevin's mood. "You don't like her?"

Kevin shrugs. "No, she was nice. Seemed to make my dad really happy. Has a daughter, Nikki, who was in seventh grade when I left."

"So," Mike tries again, drawing the word out in the same uncertain way. "We're upset about this?"

Kevin lets himself be a little touched that Mike has automatically taken his side, even though he's uncertain which side it is. Then he sighs, lifts the invitation, and tosses it across the room. It clatters to the floor unceremoniously.

After a minute, Mike takes the envelope and tosses it on the floor, too.

Kevin looks over at him, amused, and Mike shrugs. It makes him want to kiss him.

Instead, he flops backward onto the bed with a sigh. "It's stupid," he warns, realizes it's a little true. "It's just, why now? Why is he getting married while I'm away saving the world and can't even go to the wedding?"

Mike makes a face, lies down on his side beside Kevin. "Kev," he says seriously, "Mentor will let you go to your dads wedding. He'll probably insist on going, too."

Kevin shakes his head, folds his hands over his stomach to stop fidgeting with them. "And even if I could go," he says, "I hardly know her! I'd met her maybe three times before I got called away to be a samurai! How can I be happy that he's getting married when I don't even know who this person is?"

Mike doesn't say anything, just lets Kevin go, probably amused at seeing Kevin unsettled by something like this.

"It's not that I'm not happy for him," he tries again, less hostile. "But all of a sudden I feel like I'm not a part of my dad's life anymore. Like he's starting some great new family and I won't even get the chance to be a part of it."

Mike lays a hand over's Kevin's folded ones on his chest.

"I'm being ridiculous," Kevin says, sighing again. "It's been two years. Two years. And while we've been here, fighting Nighlocks, the rest of the world has moved on. It's not like I didn't know that already, I just. I don't know, maybe I didn't know. It's easy to forget that everyone around us isn't standing still, waiting for us to come home, sometimes."

He looks over at Mike, whose resting his head on a folded up arm. His face does something funny, and then he taps his thumb on top of Kevin's hands. "It probably wasn't an easy decision to make, Kevin. I don't know your dad, but, if he's anything like you, he probably thought about it a long time before sending you that invitation."

Kevin watches Mike's face as he looks away. "And why send me an invitation? Why not call me, or show up and tell me to my face?"

"Because you're dad is probably as anal-retentive as you are and doesn't know how to break rules," Mike fires back immediately, and Kevin looks back to him to see Mike looking a little bit bashful at being flippant. Kevin tries not to grin back at him, but he can't help it, and Mike leans forward, gives Kevin a quick kiss as if to say 'no offense', and pulls back.

Kevin sighs, unfolds his hands to hold onto Mike's. "I guess the whole world isn't standing still," he admits. "I've made some changes too, since I came here. There was a time," he jokes, "when I would have found you sneaking into my bedroom completely unacceptable."

Mike grins, gives Kevin's hand a squeeze. "That," he says with raised eyebrows, "was quite a while ago."

They chuckle for a minute, and Mike rubs tiny circles on Kevin's hand with his thumb.

"I've never told my dad," Kevin says suddenly, uncertain why he's confiding this particular piece of information. "About…" he gestures uncertainly, "me."

Mike lifts his head, props himself up on his hand and looks down at Kevin, silently questioning.

"My dad was the guy who got into it with the gay dads at our fourth grade father-son fishing trip. I never lived it down." He says, remembering the way the other man had punched his dad, who had scrambled out of the way and then swung back.

Mike's face doesn't change, like this is something he expected. "Things have changed a lot since then," he points out, but Kevin shakes his head.

"Not some things," he says, perfectly certain. "He's never been outwardly homophobic, but he's…" Kevin hesitates. "He's more of the 'I won't make a fuss if it doesn't affect me' types."

"But it does affect him," Mike says gently back, squeezing Kevin's hand. "You're gay."

"I'm aware," Kevin quips back, and he turns, props himself up on his arm so he can mirror Mike's position. "But there wasn't ever any reason for me to tell him. There's never been anyone worth telling him for," Kevin says, and he can't bring himself to meet Mike's eyes. "I don't know if… if I can go to a wedding I completely disapprove of _and_ lie to him at the same time."

Kevin looks back to see Mike nodding, but he doesn't look convinced.

"And how," Kevin says again, getting to the route of what's really bugging him, "can I go to his wedding knowing that if I ever decided to get married, he'd never come to mine?"

Mike makes a sympathetic face. "Because he's the only family you've got?"

Kevin blows out a breath, looks down at their hands, and he wonders.

"Does your family know?" He asks, and Mike looks up casually.

He attempts what is probably a shrug. "No, but it wouldn't matter. Not if I was happy."

Kevin raises his eyebrows. "Really?"

"I know exactly what my mother would say if I ever brought you home," Mike grins happily, pulling his hand away and then hooking a finger in Kevin's shirt collar.

"What's that?" Kevin prods, finding his amusement infectious.

"Miro el hombre hermoso y oscuro! Te lucharé para él! Ponerlos!" Mike rattles off, in what Kevin imagines is a good impression of his mom.

"What does that mean?" He asks, and Mike smiles widely.

"Look at the beautiful dark man! I'll fight you for him! Put 'em up!" He says back, and Kevin laughs.

Mike smiles, leans forward and presses a happy kiss against Kevin's mouth. They kiss gently for a few minutes before Mike pulls away, lies back down on the bed and puts his hand on Kevin's hip. Kevin follows him, hooking his arm around Mike's back, pulling him a little closer. "I'm trying not to be jealous," Kevin admits after a moment.

"My uncle and his partner have been together for fifteen years," Mike tells him quietly. "They've already fought that battle. My brothers would probably be jerks at first, and make a lot of bad jokes, but I can kick their butts, so. No one else would bat an eye."

"Maybe we should go visit your family first, then," Kevin says before he can think about it. He panics for a minute, wonders if that reveals too much of what he's been thinking lately.

Mike just smiles, closes his eyes and doesn't say anything. Which is as close to agreement as Kevin thinks he'll go, so.

Kevin watches him, feels himself relax when Mike doesn't say anything to contradict him. After a minute Mike pulls his hand off Kevin's hip and goes back to fiddling with Kevin's shirt collar. Kevin sighs, closes his eyes and tries to think, but all he can focus on is Mike's hand near his neck, occasionally brushing against his skin, and he finds that isn't such a bad thing.

"I'll go with you," Mike says sometime later, "if you want me to."

Kevin feels something in his chest go tight, a warm soft spot that aches a little when he opens his eyes and sees Mike, looking honest and curious. "Thanks," Kevin says back, his voice a little bit higher than usual. "That means a lot, you have no idea. But I don't think showing up at my dad's wedding with my impossibly handsome teammate is going to be the best way to go about it."

Mike grins. He looks like he wants to comment on 'impossibly handsome', but he doesn't. "Offers open," he says anyway. "If you need me."

_I always need you_, Kevin thinks, but he doesn't say it. Instead he inches forward, presses himself against Mike, enjoys the feel of Mike's mouth against his. He rolls them over, pushing Mike onto his back and kissing him as Mike's hands hook around Kevin's neck.

When he pulls back for air, Mike says, "We don't have to do anything," his voice sounding breathless, "for me to stay."

"I know," Kevin says, and he thinks he actually does, whether he's been acknowledging it or not. "I want to."

Mike grins, pulls Kevin back into him, and they kiss for a long time, their legs hanging off the bed awkwardly.

Later, when they're done, Kevin gets up and picks up the invitation from the floor. He tucks it back into the nightstand drawer, Mike watching him. He crawls back into the bed, lets Mike wraps his arms around him, wraps his arms around Mike in return, and seriously contemplates bringing Mike to his father's wedding.

Because really, who could look at Mike and not just love him? If there was ever a person that would make coming out to his dad easier, it would be Mike. Maybe the wedding isn't the time to do it, but Kevin knows that one day he'll need to, knows that the status quo he came here with is no longer going to work when he does go home. He can't go back to being that, to talking with his dad about nice girls, not now. Not when he's finally found out what being himself is like.

Not when he's found someone like Mike, who might just make it all worth it.

And maybe, he thinks then, he can forgive his father a little bit for moving on, for continuing to live his life while Kevin's been gone. Kevin's life certainly hasn't stalled. Maybe they'll both have changed enough, when he finally goes home, to realize that it's not as important as it seems. And maybe, if he can find a way to be happy for his dad, his dad can find a way to be happy for him.

Mike shifts beside him. "You're doing it again," he warns, and Kevin looks at him questioningly. "The thing where you keep me awake with your thinking."

Kevin rolls his eyes. "Yes, I know how difficult it is for you to watch other people do what you have trouble with."

Mike squirms, brings a hand up to Kevin's nipple to try and twist it, and Kevin fights back, laughing and pinning Mike down, covering his mouth with his own.

When he pulls away, he says, "If I bring you to the wedding, you have to behave."

Mike looks shocked for a moment, but then his face goes mischievous. "What, no spiking the punch? I can't catch the garter? What about the bouquet?"

Kevin hits him, and Mike laughs, tugging Kevin back down to him to kiss him and wrap him up so tight he can't pull away even if he wanted to. Which he doesn't. Ever, he thinks, and realizes how bad it would be if Mike did catch a bouquet…

When Mike lets him put up to breathe, he grins. "Okay, maybe you can spike the punch."

Mike's hoot of celebration is drown out by Kevin's mouth capturing his once more.


End file.
